Jakarta. Indonesian and American firms inked pledges totaling up to $38.4 billion on Wednesday local time, a curtain-raiser to the bilateral trade deal signing.

Companies and associations secured the 11 memoranda of understanding (MoUs) during President Prabowo Subianto’s Washington trip. These documents covered a plethora of fields, including semiconductors and furniture.

The signatories and the respective fields of the business MoUs were as follows:

1. Critical Minerals - The Indonesian government and Freeport Indonesia

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2. Oil Field Recovery - Pertamina and Halliburton

3. Agriculture (Corn) - Arena Agro Andalan, Cargill Inc, and its Indonesian unit

4. Cotton - Busana Apparel Group and US National Cotton Council

5. Cotton - Daehan Global and US National Cotton Council

6. Shredded Worn Clothing -  Indonesian Garment and Textile Association (AGTI), Pan Brothers, Ravel

7. Furniture - Indonesian Furniture Industry & Handicraft Association (Asmindo) and Bingaman & Son Lumber

8. Semiconductor - Galang Bumi Industri and Essence

9. Semiconductor - Galang Bumi Industri and Tynergy Technology Group

10. Transnational Free Trade Zone Friendship - Galang Bumi Industri and Solanna Group

11. Furniture/Wood Product - The Indonesian Furniture and Handicraft Industry Association (HIMKI) and American Hardwood Export Council

The Indonesian government had said that the agricultural portion of these pledges was worth $2.5 billion. The industrial sector MoUs reached $35.9 billion in value, including the cooperation on semiconductors and strategic industrial materials.

Freeport-McMoran has agreed to transfer 12% of its share interest in its local arm to the Indonesian government in 2041. It will hold a 48.76% stake in the unit that operates one of the world’s largest copper and gold mines through 2041. Its shares will then drop to 37% the following year. The MoU extends Freeport’s mining permit beyond 2041.

To the Jakarta Globe, HIMKI’s chair Abdul Sobur said that the association’s freshly signed MoU was not a purchase contract, but a strategic cooperation.

“It deals with ramping up the supply of American hardwood raw materials for the Indonesian furniture industry. It covers knowledge exchange and sustainable forestry standards. … But do note that this is a framework cooperation agreement, so there is no transaction value,” Sobur stated.

“In the long term, it can help boost exports of Indonesian furniture to global markets, particularly the US.”

Prabowo is currently in the world’s richest country to attend the inaugural Board of Peace’s meeting and seal the highly anticipated trade agreement. Both governments have been negotiating a trade pact after US President Donald Trump launched tariff threats over multibillion-dollar deficit last year. Senior government official Haryo Limanseto told the Globe that the signing remained “on schedule”.

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